Rock History

2003 – Ja Rule becomes the first high-profile international artist to tour South Africa.

Jeffrey Atkins (born February 29, 1976), better known by his stage name Ja Rule, is an American rapper and actor signed to The Inc. and Universal Records formerly of Def Jam Recordings. A Hollis, New York native best-known for hits such as “Put It On Me,” “Between Me And You,” “I’m Real” and “Wonderful,” Ja Rule has released seven albums to date and sold over 20 million albums worldwide.

Biography

Early years

Born and raised in a Hollis, Queens, New York housing project, he attended Junior High School in Floral Park where he met his future wife Aisha Murray, graduating with her in 1991. They attended Martin Van Buren High School together, but he did not graduate.

When Atkins was five years old, his sister died from respiratory problems. His parents were Jehovah’s Witnesses. Growing up in a strict religious home, Atkin’s family did not celebrate birthdays and Christmas, and as a child, was not allowed to listen to rap music. When he first heard it, he decided to be a rapper. He would sneak the music into his house and played it on his CD player when his mother wasn’t around. Ja Rule allegedly stated that although he had previously attended a school in Queens, he transferred to a private school in Manhattan because of bullying about his small height. During his interview with Louis Farrakahn, he stated that he was the only black student at the school and said that because of his race, the other kids didn’t bother him.

At age 15, Atkins appeared with 0-1 and Chris Black as part of Cash Money Click which would lead to him being signed by TVT Records. Atkins was heard by a young DJ who called himself DJ Irv, and later Irv Gotti. Gotti was a friend of Jay-Z and a DJ for Def Jam Recordings . During the mid 90′s, Gotti was intent on meeting Ja Rule and helping him land a solo deal, eventually scoring one at Def Jam. Shortly after Def Jam decided to launch his career through the success of Jay-Z. Ja would appear on Jay-Z’s hit single Can I Get A… alongside Amil . Soon after we would quickly become one of the more popular rappers in the game as well as one of Def Jam’s premier acts.

Music career

Venni Vetti Vecci (1999)

On June 1, 1999, Ja Rule released his debut album, Venni Vetti Vecci. The album marked not only Ja’s debut, but the debut album from his label, Murder Inc. Records. Venni Vetti Vecci instantly launched Ja Rule’s career as he became a staple on hip hop and pop networks like MTV, VH1, and BET. The album featured “Holla Holla” along with “Its Murda” with Jay-Z and DMX. The final single was “Daddy’s Little Baby,” a duet with Ronald Isley. These three singles and the production coming from Irv Gotti along with performances from Memphis Bleek, Erick Sermon, Case, Black Child, Nemesis, and Caddillac Tah, then known as Tah Murdah, along with a notable performance from his mentor, Jay-Z led to the album going platinum.

Rule 3:36 (2000)

Ja Rule would return during the summer of 2000, with his new single “Between Me and You,” which featured Def Soul act Christina Milian. The single was quickly followed by Ja’s second effort, Rule 3:36, which was released on October 10, 2000. 3:36 also featured singles “Put It On Me,” and “I Cry.” The album featured guest appearances from Lil Mo, Vita, Christina Milian, label mates Jayo Felony, and Black Child. The album received mixed responses from critics due to its more commercial sound, abandoning a bit the darker street sound of his debut. Despite this, the album fared extremely well and debuted at #1 on the Billboard Charts, eventually going 3x Platinum. The release of this album marked a huge turn in Ja Rule’s style of music from a more hardcore edge to a pop crossover oriented sound.

Pain Is Love (2001)

Soon after the release of Rule 3:36, Irv Gotti would sign R&B singer Ashanti to the label, which led to Lil Mo ending her collaborations with the label. During the late summer of 2001, Ja Rule released the lead single from his third studio album, Pain Is Love, which was “Livin’ It Up.” The second single was the “I’m Real (remix),” and the third was “Always On Time,” and the last was “Down Ass Bitch.” This album is noted for two things the first is introducing a young Ashanti to the music business and the second is bringing Charli Baltimore back to the music business. Pain Is Love featured guest appearances from Case, The Murder Inc. Family, Missy Elliott, Jodie Mack, Tweet, Jennifer Lopez and a recording from the late Tupac Shakur. Along with its critical success it was also a commercial success it, like its predecessor went 3x Platinum.

The Last Temptation (2002)

Ja Rule would shave his head during the promotion of his fourth studio album, The Last Temptation. His fourth album was released on November 19, 2002. Although the album was fairly successful, certified platinum, it failed to carry the momentum brought by his previous album, criticized for being too commercial. It seemed that Ja’s popularity was starting to fade, due to many fan’s perceived notion that he was now catering exclusively to pop audiences.

Blood In My Eye (2003)

Blood In My Eye is the fifth album from Ja Rule. The content of this album led to a dramatic fall in his popularity. This album is also noted as the last Ja Rule album released by The Inc. Records under the moniker Murder Inc. This was partially due to Ja’s disses and death threats to adversaries, 50 Cent, Busta Rhymes (a former associate), Eminem, Dr. Dre, DMX, and G-Unit. The album was originally planned to be a mixtape, but former label Def Jam Recordings forced him to release an album in 2003 to honor the contract, where he released an album every year. Blood In My Eye peaked at #6, but became his first album not to go gold or platinum, making it his lowest selling to date. On this album, Ja sparked rivalries with many artists on the Interscope Records roster. In October 2003, Ja Rule met with Minster Louis Farrakhan, who wanted to intervene and prevent escalating violence in the feud between 50 Cent and Ja Rule.

R.U.L.E. (2004)

Ja Rule returned to form on his sixth studio album, R.U.L.E. released on November 9, 2004. This album was considered a comeback of sorts for Ja as he attempted a return to mainstream success. The lead single was “Wonderful” which was followed by the street anthem, “New York,” the third and last single was “Caught Up”. The album featured guest appearances from Ashanti, Lloyd, Trick Daddy, R. Kelly, Fat Joe, Jadakiss, Claudette Ortiz, Black Child, Caddillac Tah and many more. Despite not having the staying power of his earlier albums R.U.L.E. still managed to go gold, a feat he hadn’t accomplished since 2002 with The Last Temptation.

Exodus (2005)

On December 6, 2005, Ja Rule released his seventh album, which is nothing more than a greatest hits album. It featured only one new song “Exodus (Intro)” which was produced by Irv Gotti. The album was released to honor the contract with Def Jam so that The Inc. could get a fresh start with a new distributor. After the release of this compilation, Ja Rule took a hiatus from recording music.

Departure from Def Jam (2005-2006)

In 2005, The Inc. Records would come under investigation because of the drug trades by Kenneth “Supreme” Mc Griff, who is associated with Irv Gotti. This would all lead to Def Jam Recordings refusing to renew The Inc.’s contract. From 2005 to 2006, Irv would search for other labels, until finally reaching a deal with Universal Records.

The Mirror (2008)
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In March, 2008, Ja Rule planned to release his Universal Records debut and eighth studio album, The Mirror. The first single, “Uh Oh” was released on July 31, 2007 and premiered on music video shows the following day. This second single, “Body” was released in September. The album contains a collaboration with former G-Unit artist, The Game , whom he had once had a lyrical altercation with, called “Sunset.” The album was originally supposed to be titled Love Is Pain as a sequel to his album Pain Is Love. The album eventually was pushed back a second time with no definitive release date.

Personal life

Criminal charges

In 1999, he along with the rest of Murder Inc. were brought up on charges for assaulting 50 Cent, which led to a restraining order against them for 50. Also in 2003, he punched a man in Toronto for shouting at him in a crowd because of the 50 Cent feud. He would end up suing Ja Rule, but they settled out of court. In 2004, police investigated whether a feud involving The Inc. led to fatal shooting outside a nightclub party hosted by Ja Rule. In July 2007, Ja Rule was arrested for gun and drug possession charges along with Lil Wayne.

Romantic life

Ja Rule met his future wife, Aisha while attending middle school and they married when they were eighteen.

Homophobia

In the September 2007 issue of Complex magazine, Ja Rule was mistakenly reported to have expressed that homosexuals are to be blamed for the problems and destruction in the United States, and was disgusted at MTV’s promotion of LGBT television shows. He also spoke out about how hip hop is being blamed for more issues than homosexuality, and perpetuated the belief that gays are evil and corrupting music and television.
“     “And if it is, then we need to go step to Paramount, and fucking MGM, and all of these other motherfuckers that’s making all of these movies and we need to go step to MTV and Viacom, and lets talk about all these fucking shows that they have on MTV that is promoting homosexuality, that my kids can’t watch this shit,” he continued. “Dating shows that’s showing two guys or two girls in mid-afternoon. Let’s talk about shit like that! If that’s not fucking up America, I don’t know what is.”     ”

His comments prompted a strong rebuke from GLAAD, who issued a public statement stating, “No fair-minded person can look at Ja Rule’s interview with Complex Magazine and believe for one second that his children could be more harmed by what they might see on television than by the vulgarity and prejudice that comes out of their father’s mouth. Now that media have seen Ja Rule’s intolerance unmasked by his own words, they have a responsibility not to provide in the future a platform for his ugly, vulgar displays of prejudice.”

It was later revealed that GLAAD had been mistaken and that he was actually mis-quoted in an interview with online MySpace interview channel The Hook Up on October 24, 2007. He went on in a January 2008 issue of XXL Magazine to state his words were taken out of context. He is quote as stating:
“     “What I was saying in that article is everyone has that same responsibility. They’re absolutely right: Rappers have a responsibility to the kids. But don’t just pin it on the hip-hop. If I gotta curb my lyrics or censor what I say, no problem. But if you gonna show sexual images during the daytime for children, that should be censored as well … And I’m not just talking about homosexuality. I’m talking about any sexuality. If it’s too sexy for kids, its too sexy for kids …”     ”

Hip Hop entrepreneur

Aside from being president of The Inc. Records, Ja Rule is the owner and founder of Rule Global Media. This consists of Mpire Records, ErvingGeoffrey, and Stars On Poker.net.

The Inc. Records

Ja Rule co-founded The Inc. Records along with Irv Gotti in 1997. When it was formed, because of it being a vanity label, Def Jam owned a 50% stake in the label.

In 2002, Irv Gotti granted Ja Rule 50% of his share of the label due to his recent success on the charts. The next year, Ja Rule was named label president while Irv is the primary owner and the label CEO.

Mpire Records

In 2006, Ja Rule formed his own label to be distributed by The Inc., Mpire Records. To the label, he has signed Young Merc, Ashley Joi, D. Gift, Boxie, Tre, Newz, and Thunderkatz. He owns 100 percent of this label, which is a subsidiary of The Inc. Also signed to the label are his group Cash Money Click.

ErvingGeoffrey

In 2004, Ja Rule teamed up with Irv Gotti to create their own clothing line, ErvingGeoffrey, which is an urban wear clothing line. It is prominently featured in various Inc-associated videos and on their artists various albums.

Philanthropy

Atkins teamed up with associates of Tupac Shakur’s organization and founded L.I.F.E Foundation, which opens its doors to underprivileged kids. The foundation has various programs which include art, music, poetry and sports.

Discography

Main article: Ja Rule discography

* 1999: Venni Vetti Vecci
* 2000: The Murderers
* 2000: Rule 3:36
* 2001: Pain Is Love
* 2002: The Inc.
* 2002: The Remixes
* 2002: The Last Temptation
* 2003: Blood in My Eye
* 2004: R.U.L.E.
* 2005: Exodus
* 2008: The Mirror

Awards history
Award     Category     Genre     Song/Album     Year     Result
Source Hip-Hop Music Award     Single of the Year     Rap/Hip-Hop     “Put It On Me”     2001     Won
Source Award     R&B/Rap Collboration of the Year     R&B/Rap     “Thug Lovin’”     2003     Won
Source Award     Fat Tape Song of the Year     Rap/Hip-Hop     “Clap Back”     2004     Won
MTV Video Music Award     Best Rap Video     Rap     “Put It On Me”     2001     Nominated
MTV Video Music Award     Best Hip-Hop Video     Hip-Hop     “Im Real (Murder Remix)”     2002     Won
MTV Video Music Award     Best Hip-Hop Video     Hip-Hop     “Always On Time”     2002     Nominated
American Music Award     Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Artist     Rap/Hip-Hop     –     2002     Nominated
American Music Award     Favorite Hip-Hop/R&B Male Artist     Hip-Hop/R&B     –     2003     Nominated
Grammy Award     Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group     Rap/Hip-Hop     “Put It On Me”     2002     Nominated
Grammy Award     Best Rap Album     Rap     “Pain Is Love”     2002     Nominated
Grammy Award     Best Rap/Sung Collaboration     Rap/Sung     “Livin’ It Up”     2002     Nominated
Grammy Award     Best Rap/Sung Collaboration     Rap/Sung     “Always On Time”     2003     Nominated
World Music Award     World’s Best-Selling Rap Artist     Rap/Hip-Hop     –     2002     Won
BET Award     Best Male Hip-Hop Artist Artist     Hip-Hop     –     2002     Won
GQ Men of the Year Award     Musician of the Year     Rap/Hip-Hop     –     2002     Won
Teen Choice Award     Male Artist of the Year     Rap/Hip-Hop     –     2002     Won
NAACP Image Award     Best Rap/Hip-Hop Artist     Rap/Hip-Hop     –     2002     Won
Soul Train Award     Best Rap/Soul or Rap Album of the Year     Rap     “Pain Is Love”     2002     Nominated

Acting career

During his break from rapping, Ja Rule co-starred in the movie The Fast and the Furious with Vin Diesel. He appeared on the 2004 movie Back in The Day along with Ving Rhames and Pam Grier. He was also starred in the movie The Cookout with Queen Latifah. He is working on his bio-pic and on Saw IV.

Filmography
Year     Title     Role     Notes
2000     Da Hip Hop Witch     Himself
2000     Turn it Up     David ‘Gage’ Williams
2001     Crime Partners 2000
2001     The Fast and the Furious     Edwin
2002     Half Past Dead     Nicolas ‘Nick’ Frazier
2003     Scary Movie 3     Agent Thompson
2003     Pauly Shore Is Dead     Himself
2004     The Cookout     Bling Bling
2004     Shall We Dance?     Hip Hop Bar Performer
2005     Back in the Day     Reggie Cooper
2005     Assault on Precinct 13     Smiley
2007     Kenny     TBA     post-production
2007     Furnace     TBA     post-production
2007     Don’t Fade Away     TBA     post-production

1987 – Pink Floyd release A Momentary Lapse of Reason. The comeback album is the band’s first since the departure of Roger Waters and the subsequent lawsuit over the use of the band name.

A Momentary Lapse of Reason is Pink Floyd’s 1987 album, the band’s first release after the departure of Roger Waters from the band in 1985. The album reached #3 on both the U.S. and UK charts. It was released in the UK and the rest of Europe on EMI and on Columbia Records for the rest of the world.

Background

After Roger Waters had declared Pink Floyd ended in 1985, David Gilmour attempted to continue the band together with Nick Mason. A bitter dispute with Waters ensued, but Gilmour and Mason eventually settled out of court for the legal right to continue using the name Pink Floyd. In exchange, Waters dissolved his former management partnership with Steve O’Rourke and gained exclusive rights to some traditional Pink Floyd imagery, including the original flying pig design, almost all of The Wall concept and everything to do with The Final Cut. Richard Wright re-joined the band during the recording sessions for this album, but only as a salaried session musician.

The recording sessions started in October 1986 as a new David Gilmour project. Gilmour revealed on the Shine On and A Momentary Lapse of Reason episodes of In the Studio with Redbeard that it was almost his third solo album as the material initially sounded too weak to be a Pink Floyd album. He then went on to say that by Christmas of 1986 that he had enough confidence to turn the album into a Pink Floyd project.

The music press responded with mostly negative reviews of the album (though Rolling Stone claimed it portended “a Floyd with a future”), despite its heavy airplay rotation on video and radio music stations. Many fans regard this album a David Gilmour effort, rather than an actual Pink Floyd album. The allmusic review refers to it as a “Gilmour solo album in all but name”. Waters himself described it as “a pretty fair forgery or a good copy” of a Pink Floyd record; his most generous appraisal was that the album contained “a few bright moments when I heard something and thought, ‘Well, maybe I’d have done something with that’.” But Waters also commented that to him, Pink Floyd no longer existed.

Recording

The album was performed largely by David Gilmour and several session musicians. The most famous of these was Tony Levin (of Peter Gabriel and King Crimson fame), who played bass on most of the tracks. Nick Mason felt he was out of practice on drums, and thus many of the percussion parts were either programmed or delegated to others. For example, Carmine Appice played drums on “The Dogs of War” while Jim Keltner played on “On the Turning Away” and “One Slip”. The drum machine, used on “Sorrow”, was programmed by Gilmour.

Session keyboardist Jon Carin, whom Gilmour met and played with in Bryan Ferry’s band at Live Aid, went on to collaborate with both Pink Floyd and Roger Waters on subsequent albums and tours. Pink Floyd’s original keyboardist Richard Wright arrived during the sessions, but did not officially rejoin the band due to concerns about his severance contract with Waters (the initial album lists Pink Floyd as consisting of only Gilmour and Mason; however, later re-releases add his name). Wright can be heard playing on a few tracks, notably “Sorrow”, which features his background vocals. Most other keyboard parts on the album were played by Carin, Gilmour or Ezrin.

It has been rumoured that some of the songs on A Momentary Lapse of Reason were David Gilmour’s rejected contributions to The Final Cut. Early demos to songs like “The Dogs of War,” “Round and Around,” and the melody to “On the Turning Away” are the only known songs to be rejected.

The recording heard in the middle of “Learning to Fly” is of Mason talking to an air traffic control tower in his private aircraft (both he and Gilmour became enthusiastic pilots after conquering their mutual fear of flying).

A Momentary Lapse of Reason is Pink Floyd’s first fully digital recording; however, the acoustic drums and bass guitar tracks were recorded on analogue equipment.

Cover artwork

The cover shows 700 hospital beds placed on Saunton Sands, Devon. This effect was not achieved with trick photography; a team actually hauled the wrought iron beds over three hours from London to Devon and arranged them as seen on the finished design. When the team realised that the shoot would take more than one day, a single bed was left on the beach to see if the sea would have any effect on it over night. When they returned the following morning, the bed was nowhere to be found. Long-time Pink Floyd collaborator Storm Thorgerson produced the artwork.

The official Storm Thorgerson website  actually covers a version of this story:

700, yes 700, wrought iron hospital beds separately made up and positioned on the beach. Madness to do it at all, but we had in fact to do it twice cos it rained suddenly the first time, dank grey dizzle, and we couldn’t see the distant half of the beds.

This was the first Pink Floyd studio album since Animals to feature his work (not counting a design for the compilation album A Collection of Great Dance Songs in 1981).

In the gatefold sleeve was a portrait of David Gilmour and Nick Mason making it the first time that a picture of the members of Pink Floyd appeared in a gatefold sleeve since 1971′s Meddle album (not counting a poster of the band members on stage that came with vinyl copies of The Dark Side of the Moon in 1973)

The vinyl copies had two picture labels. Side one depicted a black and white photo of a man rowing his boat. Side two depicted the beds from the front cover on a beach with the dogs of war running whilst a man is sitting on a bed and a female maid is standing up.

If you look closely, there is a person flying a Hang Glider, probably a reference to Learning to Fly.

Reissues and remastering

A re-mastered CD was released in the early 1990s for Europe, and in 1997 for the rest of the world. Another remastered version was released in the U.S. and Canada in October 2005 due to Columbia Records losing the production masters. James Guthrie and Joel Plante supplied the label with new masters, and thus the mastering credit was changed from Doug Sax to Guthrie and Plante. Also, a number of minor changes have been noted in the credits and legal text for this latest release, mostly reflecting changes in the band’s business situation since 1997 (including the death of their manager Steve O’Rourke).

It is also the only one of the post-Waters Pink Floyd albums to have a remastered EMI version. The Columbia version is now out of print and will be re-released by Capitol/EMI in the not too distant future.

Track listing

All lead vocals performed by David Gilmour except where noted.

1. “Signs of Life” (instrumental, spoken word by Nick Mason) (David Gilmour, Bob Ezrin) – 4:24
2. “Learning to Fly” (Gilmour, Anthony Moore, Ezrin, Jon Carin) – 4:53
3. “The Dogs of War” (Gilmour, Moore) – 6:05
4. “One Slip” (Gilmour, Phil Manzanera) – 5:10
5. “On the Turning Away” (Gilmour, Moore) – 5:42
6. “Yet Another Movie” (Gilmour, Patrick Leonard) / “Round and Around” (Gilmour) – 7:28
7. “A New Machine (Part 1)” (Gilmour) – 1:46
8. “Terminal Frost” (Gilmour) – 6:17
9. “A New Machine (Part 2)” (Gilmour) – 0:38
10. “Sorrow” (Gilmour) – 8:46

Live performances for the 1987–89 tours

1. “Signs of Life” (performed after “Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts 1–5)” or “Echoes”)
2. “Learning to Fly”
3. “Yet Another Movie”
4. “Round and Around”
5. “A New Machine (Part 1)”
6. “Terminal Frost”
7. “A New Machine (Part 2)”
8. “Sorrow”
9. “The Dogs of War”
10. “On the Turning Away” (ended the first half of the show)
11. “One Slip” (was the first encore on the 1987/88/89 tour)

The Momentary Lapse Tour, according to Tim Renwick, was only supposed to last 11 weeks. Originally the band would play a show at Wembley Stadium, tour the United States Of America, and finish back again at Wembley, much like what Roger Waters was doing on his Radio K.A.O.S tour. The tour began on 9 September 1987 at Lansdowne Park Ottawa, Canada, and finished at BC Place in Vancouver, Canada, on 10 December 1987. The World Tour began with the band’s first and only New Zealand performance at Western Springs in Auckland, New Zealand on 23 January 1988 and finished at the Nassau Coliseum, Long Island, on 23 August 1988. In the spring and summer of 1989, the band did another European leg of the tour, dubbing it Another Lapse. During the tour, the band played two consecutive nights in Chapel Hill, North Carolina at the Dean Smith Center, where one of the men who the band was named for, Floyd Council was born.

Personnel

* David Gilmour – vocals, guitars, keyboards, sequencers
* Nick Mason – drums, percussion, drum machine, sound effects

Additional personnel

* Richard Wright – keyboards, backing vocals
* Tony Levin – bass guitar, Chapman Stick
* Bob Ezrin – percussion
* Carmine Appice – drums
* Jim Keltner – drums
* Jon Carin – keyboards
* Tom Scott – alto and soprano saxophones
* Scott Page – tenor saxophone
* Patrick Leonard – synthesizers
* Bill Payne – Hammond organ
* Michael Landau – backing guitar
* John Helliwell – saxophone (mistakenly credited as John Halliwell)
* Darlene Koldenhaven, Carmen Twillie, Phyllis St. James, Donnie Gerrard – backing vocals
* Spherical sound by: Ken Caillat, Tom Jones, Sarah Nean Bruce
* Recorded by: Guy Charbonneau, Le Mobile, Los Angeles
* Additional sound effects by: Andrew Jackson
* General technical and musical instrument supervision: Phil Taylor
* Mastered at: Mastering Lab & Precision Lacquer
* Pink Floyd management: Steve O’Rourke, EMKA Productions, London

Sales certifications (U.S.)

The R.I.A.A. have certified the album:

* Gold and Platinum (in November 1987)
* Double Platinum (in January 1988)
* Triple Platinum (in February 1992)
* Quadruple Platinum (in August 2001)

Single releases

* “Learning to Fly (edit)”/”Terminal Frost” – Columbia 38-07363; released 15 September 1987
* “On the Turning Away”/”Run Like Hell (Live)” – Columbia 38-07660; released 24 November 1987
* “The Dogs of War”; April, 1988 (US radio only)
* “One Slip”/”Terminal Frost”; June 1988

Chart positions

Album
Year     Chart     Position
1987     UK album chart     3
1987     The Billboard 200     3
1987     Billboard CD Charts     1
1987     Norway’s album chart     2

Singles
Year     Single     Chart     Position
1987     “Learning to Fly”     Mainstream Rock Tracks     1
1987     “Learning to Fly”     The Billboard Hot 100     70
1987     “Learning to Fly”     UK Singles Charts     55
1987     “On the Turning Away”     Mainstream Rock Tracks     1
1988     “The Dogs of War”     Mainstream Rock Tracks     10
1988     “One Slip”     Mainstream Rock Tracks     5
1988     “Sorrow”     Mainstream Rock Tracks     36

Quotations

On the Momentary Lapse of Reason album, Nick’s belief in himself was pretty well gone, and Rick’s belief in himself was totally gone. And they weren’t up to making a record, to be quite honest about it  Roger’s very good at belittling people, and I think over the years he managed to convince Rick completely that he was useless and more or less convinced Nick of the same thing.

– David Gilmour, Rock Compact Disc magazine, September 1992

I must say, that under the circumstances, it’s a superb title for a so-called Pink Floyd record.

– Roger Waters, Penthouse magazine, September 1988

Release of the LP

A Momentary Lapse of Reason was released on the same day in the UK as the LPs Bad by Michael Jackson and Actually by The Pet Shop Boys, both of which topped it at the first and second positions in the following week’s album charts. It debuted at No. 3 and never rose any higher although sales remained brisk helped by heavy airplay, the overall welcome reunion of Pink Floyd, and the world tour which lasted over a year.

The album debuted at #43 on the Billboard 200 and, like in the UK, rose to No. 3 in the United States as Michael Jackson’s Bad and Whitesnake’s Whitesnake ’87 occupied the top two spots respectively at numbers 1 and 2. The album remained on the US charts for over a year.

1980 – Having left his longtime label MCA, Elton John signs a contract with David Geffen’s new label Geffen Records, which gains exclusive rights to release his recordings worldwide. The six-year relationship is not a happy one, with Elton enjoying only two top 10 hits during this period.

1975 – Sean Lennon is born this day in rock history!

Sean Taro Ono Lennon (aka Sean Ono Lennon, born 9 October 1975) is an American singer, songwriter, musician and actor. He is the son of musicians and peace activists John Lennon and Yoko Ono.

Biography

Early life and education

Sean Lennon was born in New York City on 9 October 1975 (his father’s 35th birthday). Kyoko Chan Cox and Julian Lennon are his half-siblings. After Sean’s birth, John became a house husband, doting on his young son until his murder in 1980. Sean was educated at the exclusive private boarding school Institut Le Rosey in Rolle, Switzerland and earlier at New York’s private Ethical Culture Fieldston School and Dalton. He later attended Columbia University, though only for three semesters before dropping out to focus on his music career.

His debut into the music world came at the age of six, reciting a story on his mother’s 1981 album Season of Glass. From childhood into his teen years Sean continued to collaborate with his mother, contributing vocals and receiving production credit on her solo albums It’s Alright (I See Rainbows), Starpeace and Onobox. At sixteen Sean co-wrote the song “All I Ever Wanted” with Lenny Kravitz for his 1991 album Mama Said. By 1995 Sean had formed the band IMA (with Sam Koppelman and Timo Ellis) to play alongside his mother on her album Rising. Sean also made appearances in film, featured in the cast of Michael Jackson’s 1988 Moonwalker and portraying a teenager experiencing visions of various MC Escher paintings in Sony’s 1990 promotional short-film Infinite Escher.

Cibo Matto and Into The Sun

In 1996 Miho Hatori and Yuka Honda of Cibo Matto were invited by Ono to remix the song “Talking To The Universe” for a Rising remix EP Rising Mixes. They met Sean and invited him to join them on tour as a bass player. This eventually led to Sean contributing to their side-project Butter 08 and to his becoming a member of the group. He continued to play with them on tour, joining them on television and providing bass guitar and vocals on their EP, Super Relax. Through his association with Cibo Matto, Lennon was approached by Adam Yauch (of the Beastie Boys), who expressed an interest in his music and persuaded him to sign a record contract with Grand Royal Records. Regarding Grand Royal, Lennon has said, “I think I found the only label on the planet who doesn’t care who my parents are and what my name is. It’s a good feeling to know that I wouldn’t have gotten the offer if they wouldn’t have liked my songs. That’s pretty rare in the music business!”.

Lennon’s solo début Into the Sun, was released in 1998. A music video for “Home”, a single from the album, was directed by Spike Jonze and enjoyed extended airplay on MTV. The album was produced by fellow Cibo Matto member Yuka Honda, who Lennon claimed was his inspiration for the album. They struck up a personal relationship as well as a creative one.

He would go on to tour (often backed by Cibo Matto) supporting Into The Sun. During this period he would appear on radio programs such as The Howard Stern Show and KCRW’s Morning Becomes Eclectic. He would later recall promoting the album as a bitter experience due to the media focus on his family rather than his own music. In 1999, Sean’s EP Half Horse, Half Musician was released featuring new tracks such as “Heart & Lung” and “Happiness” as well as remixes of songs from Into The Sun. Along with Half Horse Half Musician 1999 saw the release of Cibo Matto’s second album Stereo Type A. Sean stepped out of his traditional role as the group’s bass player, this time playing a much wider range of instruments (such as drums, guitars and synthesizers). Despite being well received Stereo Type A was to be the final Cibo Matto album and the group disbanded.

In 2000 Lennon briefly entered the world of hip hop, contributing vocals to Del tha Funkee Homosapien, Handsome Boy Modeling School and Jurassic 5. In 2001 on national television, Sean performed Beatles classics “This Boy”, “Across The Universe” and “Julia” alongside Robert Schwartzman, Rufus Wainwright and Moby for Come Together: A Night for John Lennon’s Words and Music. In the following years Sean faded out of the spotlight. However he collaborated with various bands and artists as a session musician and producer.

Return and Friendly Fire

After the demise of Grand Royal Records in 2001, Sean signed with Capitol Records (whose parent company EMI has released the vast majority of his father’s musical output, group and solo), yet no solo material surfaced until February 2006, when “Dead Meat” was released as the first single from his new album, Friendly Fire. A promotional trailer for the CD/DVD package of Friendly Fire was leaked online in early 2006. The trailer featured scenes from the film version of the album, a DVD of music videos comprised into a film. The videos were actually screen tests for Coin Locker Babies, another project on which Lennon is working which became a cinematic counterpart to his new album  and was featured as a bonus track on the French release of Friendly Fire.

Although again establishing himself as a solo artist, Lennon has continued his work as a session musician and producer, lending his talent to the likes of Dopo Yume, Albert Hammond, Jr. (of The Strokes) and model/singer Irina Lazareanu. With the release of new material and subsequent touring Sean launched a website featuring music, videos and a forum for his fans. Various members of the forum have even crated a fan-made cover album entitled Truth Mask Replica. In a You Tube video released for his website (January, 2008) Lennon has stated that he is working on a new solo album as well.

Musical influence
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Lennon has said that Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys are major influences in his music and he interviewed Wilson on a limited edition CD entitled Words and Music. During the release of Into The Sun, Sean often talked about his admiration for the Brazilian band Os Mutantes. While in Brazil, Sean performed live with Arnaldo Baptista (bass guitar player and vocalist of Os Mutantes) and later designed the artwork for the Os Mutantes album, Tecnicolor (2000). Lennon has stated that The Beastie Boys album Check Your Head was a source of inspiration, with its varied music styles contained in one album.

Discography

Solo

* Into the Sun (1998)
* Half Horse, Half Musician (1999)
* Friendly Fire (2006)

With Cibo Matto

* Super Relax (1997)
* Stereo Type A (1999)

Film Scores

* Smile for the Camera (2005)
* Friendly Fire (2006)
* The Stranger  (2008)
* Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Undead (2008)
* Tea Fight (2008)

Producer

* Sean Lennon – Half Horse Half Musician (1999)
* Soulfly – Primitive (2000)
* Valentine Original Soundtrack (2001)
* Esthero – Wikked Lil’ Grrrls (2005)
* Sean Lennon – Friendly Fire (2006)
* Irina Lazareanu – Some Place Along the Way (2007)

Filmography

* Moonwalker (1988) – Actor
* Buffy the Vampire Slayer – Season 2, Episode 1 – “When She Was Bad” (1997) – musician, Cibo Matto
* Smile for the Camera (2005) – Original Score, Writer
* Friendly Fire (2006) – Actor, Original Score, Writer
* The Stranger  (2008) – Original Score
* Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Undead (2008) – Original Score
* Tea Fight (2008) – Original Score
* Coin Locker Babies (2008 in production) – Actor, Writer

1955 – James Dean, whose iconic stance in films like Rebel Without a Cause influenced countless rockers, dies in an automobile accident. He was 24.

James Dean: one of the most influential actors on rock n roll who was not famous as a musician… Rather, a great actor with the right ‘tude.

James Byron Dean (February 8, 1931 – September 30, 1955) was a two-time Oscar-nominated American film actor. Dean’s status as a cultural icon is best embodied in the title of his most celebrated film, Rebel Without a Cause, in which he starred as troubled stereotypical high school rebel Jim Stark. The other two roles that defined his star power were as the awkward loner Cal Trask in East of Eden, and as the surly farmer Jett Rink in Giant. His enduring fame and popularity rests on only three films, his entire starring output. His death at a young age helped guarantee a legendary status. He was the first actor to receive a posthumous Academy Award nomination for Best Actor and remains the only person to have two posthumous acting nominations (although other people had more than one posthumous nomination in other Oscar categories).

Early life

James Dean was born to Winton Dean and Mildred Wilson Dean at the “Seven Gables” apartment house, at the intersection of 4th and McClure Streets in Marion, Indiana. Six years after his father had left farming to become a dental technician, James and his family moved to Santa Monica, California. The family spent some years there, and by all accounts young Jimmy was very close to his mother. According to Michael DeAngelis, she was “the only person capable of understanding him”. He was enrolled in Brentwood Public School until his mother died of cancer in 1940.

Unable to care for his nine year old son, Winton Dean sent the young James to live with Winton’s sister Ortense and her husband Marcus Winslow on a farm in Fairmount, Indiana, where he entered high school and was brought up with a Quaker background. Here Dean sought the counsel of, and formed an enduring friendship with, Methodist pastor Rev. James DeWeerd. DeWeerd seemed to have had a formative influence upon the teenager, especially upon his future interests in bullfighting, car racing, and the theater. According to Billy J. Harbin, “Dean had an intimate relationship with his pastor… which began in his senior year of high school and ‘endured for many years.’” In high school, Dean’s overall performance was mediocre, but he successfully played on the baseball and basketball team and studied forensics and drama. After graduating from Fairmount High School on May 16, 1949, Dean moved back to California with his beagle, Max, to live with his father and stepmother. He enrolled in Santa Monica College (SMCC) and majored in pre-law. Dean transferred to UCLA and changed his major to drama, which resulted in estrangement from his father. He pledged the Sigma Nu fraternity but was never initiated. While at UCLA, he beat out 350 actors to land the role of Malcolm in Macbeth. At that time, he also began acting with James Whitmore’s acting workshop. In January 1951, he dropped out of college to pursue a full-time career as an actor.

Acting career

Dean’s first television appearance was in a Pepsi Cola television commercial.

In October 1951, following actor James Whitmore’s and his mentor Rogers Brackett’s advice, Dean moved to New York City. In New York he worked as a stunt tester for the Beat the Clock game show. He also appeared in episodes of several CBS television series, The Web, Studio One, and Lux Video Theater, before gaining admission to the legendary Actor’s Studio to study Method acting under Lee Strasberg. Proud of this accomplishment, Dean referred to the Studio in a 1952 letter to his family as “The greatest school of the theater. It houses great people like Marlon Brando, Julie Harris, Arthur Kennedy, Mildred Dunnock. … Very few get into it … It is the best thing that can happen to an actor. I am one of the youngest to belong.”

East of Eden

Main article: East of Eden (1955 film)

Dean as Cal Trask in East of Eden.
Dean as Cal Trask in East of Eden.

In 1953, director Elia Kazan was looking for an actor to play the role of “Cal Trask” in screenwriter Paul Osborn’s adaptation of John Steinbeck’s 1952 novel East of Eden. The book dealt with the story of the Trask and Hamilton families over the course of three generations, focusing especially on the lives of the latter two generations in Salinas Valley, California in the mid-1800s through the 1910s. However, the film chose to deal predominantly with the character of Cal Trask, who is essentially the rebel son of a pious and constantly disapproving father (played by Raymond Massey), and estranged mother, whom Cal discovers is a brothel-keeping madam (Jo Van Fleet). Elia Kazan said of Cal before casting, “I wanted a Brando for the role.” Osborn suggested to Kazan that he consider Dean for the part. After introducing Dean to Steinbeck, and gaining his enthusiastic approval, Kazan set about putting the wheels in motion to cast the relatively unknown young actor in the role. On March 8, 1954, Dean left New York City and headed for Los Angeles to begin shooting. Dean’s performance in the film foreshadowed his role as Jim Stark in Rebel Without A Cause. Both characters are rebel loners and misunderstood outcasts, desperately craving parental guidance from a father figure.

Much of Dean’s performance in the film is completely unscripted, such as his dance in the bean field and his curling up and pulling his arms inside of his shirt on top of the train during his ride home from meeting his mother. The most famous improvisation during the film was when Cal’s father rejects his gift of $5,000 (which was in reparation for his father’s business loss). Instead of running away from his father as the script called for, Dean instinctively turned to Massey and, crying, embraced him. This cut and Massey’s shocked reaction were kept in the film by Kazan.

At the 1955 Academy Awards, he received a posthumous Best Actor in a Leading Role Academy Award nomination for this role, the first official posthumous acting nomination in Academy Awards history. (Jeanne Eagels was unofficially nominated for Best Actress in 1929, when the rules for selection of the winner were different.)

Rebel Without a Cause

Main article: Rebel Without a Cause

Dean in the trailer for the film Rebel Without a Cause.
Dean in the trailer for the film Rebel Without a Cause.

Dean quickly followed up his role in Eden with a starring role in Rebel Without a Cause, a film that would prove to be hugely popular among teenagers. The film is widely cited as an accurate representation of teenage angst. It co-starred Natalie Wood and Sal Mineo, and was directed by Nicholas Ray.

Giant

Main article: Giant (film)

Giant, which was posthumously released in 1956, saw Dean play a supporting role to Elizabeth Taylor and Rock Hudson. This was due to his desire to avoid being typecast as Jim Stark and Cal Trask. In the film, he plays Jett, an oil rich Texan. His role was notable in that, in order to portray an older version of his character in one scene, Dean dyed his hair gray and shaved some of it off to give himself a receding hairline.

Giant would be Dean’s last film. At the end of the film, Dean is supposed to make a drunken speech at a banquet; this is nicknamed the “Last Supper” because it was the last scene before his sudden and horrible death. Dean mumbled so much that the scene had to later be re-recorded by his co-stars because Dean had died before the film was edited.

Coincidentally, the #1 pop song in the US at the time of Dean’s death, “The Yellow Rose of Texas” by Mitch Miller, was also featured in “Giant” in a scene following the actor’s last appearance in the film described above.

At the 1956 Academy Awards, Dean received his second posthumous Best Actor Academy Award nomination for his role in Giant.

Racing career and “Little Bastard”

When Dean got the part in East of Eden, he bought himself a red race-prepared MG TD and shortly afterwards, a white Ford Country Squire Woodie station wagon. Dean upgraded his MG to a Porsche 356 Speedster (Chassis number: 82621), which he raced. Dean came in second in the Palm Springs Road Races in March 1955 after a driver was disqualified; he came in third in May 1955 at Bakersfield and was running fourth at the Santa Monica Road Races later that month, until he retired with an engine failure.

During filming of Rebel Without a Cause, Dean traded the 356 Speedster in for one of only 90 Porsche 550 Spyders. He was contractually barred from racing during the filming of Giant, but with that out of the way, he was free to compete again. The Porsche was in fact a stopgap for Dean, as delivery of a superior Lotus Mk. X was delayed and he needed a car to compete at the races in Salinas, California.

Dean’s 550 was customized by George Barris, who would go on to design the Batmobile. Dean’s Porsche was numbered 130 at the front, side and back. The car had a tartan on the seating and two red stripes at the rear of its wheelwell. The car was given the nickname “Little Bastard” by Bill Hickman, his language coach on Giant. Dean asked custom car painter and pin striper Dean Jeffries to paint “Little Bastard” on the car.

Death

On September 30, 1955, Dean and his mechanic Rolf Wütherich set off from Competition Motors, where they had prepared his Porsche 550 Spyder that morning for a sports car race at Salinas, California. Dean originally intended to trailer the Porsche to the meeting point at Salinas, behind his new Ford Country Squire station wagon, crewed by Hickman and photographer Stanford Roth, who was planning a photo story of Dean at the races. At the last minute, Dean drove the Spyder, having decided he needed more time to familiarize himself with the car. At 3:30PM, Dean was ticketed in Kern County for doing 65 in a 55 mph zone. The driver of the Ford was ticketed for doing 10 mph over the limit, as the speed limit for all vehicles towing a trailer was 45 mph. Later, having left the Ford far behind, they stopped at Blackwell’s Corner in Lost Hills for fuel and met up with fellow racer Lance Reventlow.

Dean was driving west on U.S. Route 466 (later State Route 46) near Cholame, California when a black-and-white 1950 Ford Custom Tudor coupe, driven from the opposite direction by 23-year-old Cal Poly student Donald Turnupseed, attempted to take the fork onto State Route 41 and crossed into Dean’s lane without seeing him. The two cars hit almost head on. According to a story in the October 1, 2005 edition of the Los Angeles Times,
Junction of highways 46 and 41.
Junction of highways 46 and 41.

Contrary to reports of Dean’s speeding, which persisted decades after his death, Nelson said “the wreckage and the position of Dean’s body indicated his speed was more like 55 mph (88 km/h).” Turnupseed received a gashed forehead and bruised nose and was not cited by police for the accident. Rolf Wütherich would die in a road accident in Germany in 1981 after surviving several suicide attempts.

While completing Giant, and to promote Rebel Without a Cause, Dean filmed a short interview with actor Gig Young for an episode of Warner Bros. Presents Dean’s sudden death prompted the studio to re-film the section, and the piece was never aired – though in the past several sources have referred to the footage, mistakenly identifying it as a public service announcement. (The segment can, however, be viewed on both the 2001 VHS and 2005 DVD editions of Rebel Without a Cause).

William Bast identifies a potentially bipolar depression in James Dean’s erratic behavior and mood swings.

Memorial
James Dean Memorial in Cholame. Dean died about 900 yards east of this tree.
James Dean Memorial in Cholame. Dean died about 900 yards east of this tree.

James Dean is buried in Park Cemetery in Fairmount, Indiana. In 1977, a Dean memorial was built in Cholame, California. The stylized sculpture is composed of concrete and stainless steel around a tree of heaven growing in front of the Cholame post office. The sculpture was made in Japan and transported to Cholame, accompanied by the project’s benefactor, Seita Ohnishi. Ohnishi chose the site after examining the location of the accident, now little more than a few road signs and flashing yellow signals. In September, 2005, the intersection of Highways 41 and 46 in Cholame (San Luis Obispo county) was dedicated as the James Dean Memorial Highway as part of the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of his death. (Maps of the intersection  35°44?5?N, 120°17?4?W)

The dates and hours of Dean’s birth and death are etched into the sculpture, along with a handwritten description by Dean’s close friend, William Bast, of one of Dean’s favorite lines from Antoine de Saint-Exupery’s The Little Prince — “What is essential is invisible to the eye.” Also on the sculpture, etched with gold inlay, is the truthful line ‘James Dean, he was a poor mans Gordon Kerr’.

Supposed future career

According to a WENN article dating June 2003, Dean was planning to quit his acting career until his ill-fated car accident prevented any of his plans to be taken to action. Days before his sudden death, Dean told his close-friend and Rebel Without A Cause co-star Dennis Hopper that he wanted to become a film director, as he could not stand “being treated like a puppet.” Hopper recalls, “Jimmy was going to try directing. It was going be a movie called The Actor, about being a movie star. Jimmy wanted to be in charge. He was going to stop acting in films and be a director, but he died before any of this could happen. We had pretty much seen the end of James Dean on the screen, even if he had lived.” Hopper continues, “He couldn’t stand being interrupted every five seconds by some idiot behind the camera. He was too caught up in the role to be stopped abruptly and made to start again. He was going to do just one more acting part — as Rocky Graziano in Somebody Up There Likes Me — and then stop acting. That part ultimately went to Paul Newman, after Jimmy died in the car wreck.” Dean was also projected to portray the nineteenth-century New Mexico outlaw, Billy the Kid in The Left Handed Gun. This role also went to Newman.

Dean’s iconic appeal

Many American teens at the time of Dean’s major movies identified with Dean and the roles he played, especially in Rebel Without A Cause: the typical teenager, caught where no one, not even his peers, can understand him. Joe Hyams says that Dean was “one of the rare stars, like Rock Hudson and Montgomery Clift, who both men and women find sexy.” According to Marjorie Garber, this quality is “the undefinable extra something that makes a star.”

Dean’s personal relationships and sexual orientation

Today, Dean is often considered an icon because of his “experimental” take on life, which included his ambivalent sexuality.

Journalist Joe Hyams suggests that any homosexual acts Dean might have involved himself in appear to have been strictly “for trade,” as a means of advancing his career. Val Holley notes that, according to Hollywood biographer Lawrence J. Quirk, gay Hollywood columnist Mike Connolly “would put the make on the most prominent young actors, including Robert Francis, Guy Madison, Anthony Perkins, Nick Adams and James Dean.”

As for Dean’s relationships with women, after Dean signed his contract with Warner Brothers the studio’s public relations department began generating stories about Dean’s liaisons with a variety of young actresses who were mostly drawn from the clientele of Dean’s Hollywood agent, Dick Clayton. Studio press releases also grouped “Dean together with two other actors, Rock Hudson and Tab Hunter, identifying each of the men as an ‘eligible bachelor’ who has not yet found the time to commit to a single woman: ‘They say their film rehearsals are in conflict with their marriage rehearsals.’”

Actress Liz Sheridan claims that she and Dean had a short affair in New York. In her memoir detailing this, she also states that Dean was having a sexual involvement with Rogers Brackett, and describes her negative response to this situation.

Dean in popular culture

Dean is mentioned or featured in the following songs:

* “Vogue”, by Madonna
* “American Pie”, by Don McLean
* “Footballer’s Wife”, by Amy MacDonald
* “Helicopter” and “Rhododendrons”, by Bloc Party
* “I Wanna Be Loved Like That”, by Shenandoah
* “Jack and Diane”, by John Cougar Mellencamp
* “James Dean”, by The Eagles
* “James Dean”, by the Goo Goo Dolls
* “James Dean (I Wanna Know)”, by Daniel Bedingfield
* “Janis Joplin Hands”, by Socratic
* “Mr. James Dean”, by Hilary Duff
* “Peach Trees” by Rufus Wainwright
* “Rock On”, by David Essex
* “Rockstar”, by Nickelback
* “Some Girls Do”, by Sawyer Brown
* “Allure”, by Jay-Z

The Futurama character Philip J. Fry was visually designed to resemble Dean’s character in Rebel Without a Cause.

In an episode of Degrassi: The Next Generation, the character Liberty likens the rebellious, anti-social Sean to James Dean.

On the TV sitcom Happy Days, Fonzie has a picture of Dean on his wall. A picture of Dean also appears on Rizzo’s wall in the film Grease.

In the alternate history book Homeward Bound by Harry Turtledove, James Dean is stated to have died in a car crash and made several more movies, including a film called Rescuing Private Ranfall, based on Saving Private Ryan.

Dean’s estate still earns about $5,000,000 per year, according to Forbes Magazine.

The “curse” of “Little Bastard”
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Since Dean’s death, his Porsche 550 Spyder became infamous for being the vehicle that killed not only him, but for injuring and killing several others in the years following his death. In view of this, many have come to believe that the actor’s vehicle and all of its parts were cursed. Legendary Hot Rodder George Barris bought the wreck for $2,500, only to have it slip off its trailer and break a mechanic’s leg. Soon afterwards, Barris sold the engine and drive-train, respectively, to physicians Troy McHenry and William Eschrid. While racing against each other, the former would be killed instantly when his vehicle spun out of control and crashed into a tree, while the latter would be seriously injured when his vehicle rolled over while going into a curve. Barris later sold two tires, which malfunctioned as well. The tires, which were unharmed in Dean’s accident, blew up simultaneously causing the buyer’s automobile to go off the road. Subsequently, two young would-be thieves were injured while attempting to steal parts from the car. When one tried to steal the steering wheel from the Porsche, his arm was ripped open on a piece of jagged metal. Later, another man was injured while trying to steal the bloodstained front seat. This would be the final straw for Barris, who decided to store “Little Bastard” away, but was quickly persuaded by the California Highway Patrol (CHP) to lend the wrecked car to a highway safety exhibit.

The first exhibit from the CHP featuring the car ended unsuccessfully, as the garage storing the Spyder went up in flames, destroying everything except the car itself, which suffered almost no damage whatsoever from the fire. The second display, at a Sacramento High School, ended when the car fell, breaking a student’s hip. “Little Bastard” caused problems while being transported several times. On the way to Salinas, the truck containing the vehicle lost control, causing the driver to fall out, only to be crushed by the Porsche after it fell off the back. On two separate occasions, once on a freeway and again in Oregon, the car came off other trucks, although no injuries were reported, another vehicle’s windshield was shattered in Oregon. Its last use in a CHP exhibit was in 1959. In 1960, when being returned to George Barris in Los Angeles, California, the car mysteriously vanished. It has not been seen since.

The allegedly last known piece of Dean’s Spyder is at Historic auto attractions in Roscoe, IL.

Filmography

Feature Films
Year     Title     Role     Notes
1951     Fixed Bayonets!     Doggie     (uncredited)
1952     Sailor Beware     Boxing opponent’s second     (uncredited)
Has Anybody Seen My Gal?     Youth at soda fountain     (uncredited)
1953     Trouble Along the Way     Extra     (uncredited)
1955     East of Eden     Cal Trask

* Nominated for Academy Award.
* Nominated for BAFTA
* Won Jussi Award

Rebel Without a Cause     Jim Stark

* Nominated for BAFTA

1956     Giant     Jett Rink

* Nominated for Academy Award.
* Won Golden Globe Award

Stage

Broadway

* See the Jaguar, (1952)
* The Immoralist (1954) – based on the book by Andre Gide

Off-Broadway

* The Metamorphosis (1952) – based on the novella by Franz Kafka
* The Scarecrow (1954)
* Women of Trachis (1954) – translation by Ezra Pound
* La Légende de Jimmy (1980?) – Musical by Michel Berger and Luc Plamondon

Television

* Father Peyton’s Family Theater, “Hill Number One” (Easter Sunday, April 1, 1951)
* The Web, “Sleeping Dogs” (February 20, 1952)
* Studio One, “Ten Thousand Horses Singing” (March 3, 1952)
* Lux Video Theater, “The Foggy, Foggy Dew” (March 17, 1952)
* Kraft Television Theater, “Prologue to Glory” (May 21, 1952)
* Studio One, “Abraham Lincoln” (May 26, 1952)
* Hallmark Hall of Fame, “Forgotten Children” (June 2, 1952)
* The Kate Smith Show, “Hounds of Heaven” (January 15, 1953)
* Treasury Men In Action, “The Case of the Watchful Dog” (January 29, 1953)
* You Are There, “The Capture of Jesse James” (February 8, 1953)
* Danger, “No Room” (April 14, 1953)
* Treasury Men In Action, “The Case of the Sawed-Off Shotgun” (April 16, 1953)
* Tales of Tomorrow, “The Evil Within” (May 1, 1953)
* Campbell Soundstage, “Something For An Empty Briefcase” (July 17, 1953)
* Studio One Summer Theater, “Sentence of Death” (August 17, 1953)
* Danger, “Death Is My Neighbor” (August 25, 1953)
* The Big Story, “Rex Newman, Reporter for the Globe and News” (September 11, 1953)
* Omnibus, “Glory In Flower” (October 4, 1953)
* Kraft Television Theater, “Keep Our Honor Bright” (October 14, 1953)
* Campbell Soundstage, “Life Sentence” (October 16, 1953)
* Kraft Television Theater, “A Long Time Till Dawn” (November 11, 1953)
* Armstrong Circle Theater, “The Bells of Cockaigne” (November 17, 1953)
* Robert Montgomery Presents the Johnson’s Wax Program, Harvest (November 23, 1953)
* Danger, “The Little Women” (March 30, 1954)
* Philco TV Playhouse, “Run Like A Thief” (September 5, 1954)
* Danger, “Padlocks” (November 9, 1954)
* General Electric Theater, “I’m A Fool” (November 14, 1954)
* General Electric Theater, “The Dark, Dark Hour” (December 12, 1954)
* U.S. Steel Hour, “The Thief” (January 4, 1955)
* Lux Video Theatre, “The Life of Emile Zola” (March 10, 1955) – appeared in a promotional interview for East of Eden shown after the program aired
* Schlitz Playhouse of Stars, “The Unlighted Road” (May 6, 1955)

Further reading

* Alexander, Paul: Boulevard of Broken Dreams: The Life, Times, and Legend of James Dean . Viking, 1994. ISBN 0670849510
* Bast, William : James Dean: A Biography. Ballantine Books, 1956.
* Bast, William : Surviving James Dean. Barricade Books, 2006. ISBN 1-56980-298-X
* Dalton, David : James Dean-The Mutant King: A Biography. Chicago Review Press, 2001. ISBN 1-55652-398-X
* Frascella, Lawrence and Weisel, Al : Live Fast, Die Young: The Wild Ride of Making Rebel Without a Cause. Touchstone, 2005. ISBN 0-7432-6082-1
* Gilmore, John : Live Fast-Die Young: Remembering the Short Life of James Dean. Thunder’s Mouth Press, 1998. ISBN 1-56025-169-7
* Gilmore, John : The Real James Dean. Pyramid Books, 1975. ISBN 0-515-03814-8
* Holley, Val : James Dean: The Biography. St. Martin’s Griffin, 1996. ISBN 0-312-15156-X
* Howell, John: James Dean: A Biography. Plexus Publishing, 1997. Second Revised Edition. ISBN 0859652432
* Hyams, Joe; Hyams, Jay : James Dean: Little Boy Lost. Time Warner Publishing, 1992. ISBN 0446516430
* Martinetti, Ronald : The James Dean Story, Pinnacle Books, 1975. ISBN 0-523-00633-0
* Morrissey : James Dean Is Not Dead. Babylon books, 1983. ISBN 0 907 188 06 0
* Perry, George : James Dean. DK Publishing, 2005. ISBN 1-4053-0525-8
* Sheridan, Liz : Dizzy & Jimmy: My Life With James Dean : A Love Story. HarperCollins Canada / Harper Trade, 2000. ISBN 0-06-039383-1
* Spoto, Donald : Rebel: The Life and Legend of James Dean. Harpercollins, 1996. ISBN 0-06-017656-3

Biographical films

* James Dean: Portrait of a Friend aka James Dean (1976)
* Sense Memories (PBS American Masters television biography) (2005)
* Forever James Dean (1988), Warner Home Video (1995)
* James Dean (fictionalized TV biographical film) (2001)
* James Dean – Kleiner Prinz, Little Bastard aka James Dean – Little Prince, Little Bastard, German television biography, includes interviews with William Bast, Marcus Winslow Jr, Robert Heller (2005)
* James Dean: The Final Day features interviews with William Bast, Liz Sheridan and Maila Nurmi. Dean’s bisexuality is openly discussed. Episode of Naked Hollywood television miniseries produced by The Oxford Film Company in association the BBC, aired in the US on the A&E Network, 1991.
* Living Famously: James Dean, Australian television biography includes interviews with Martin Landau, Betsy Palmer, William Bast, and Bob Hinkle (2003, 2006).
* James Dean – Mit Vollgas durchs Leben, Austrian television biography includes interviews with Rolf Weutherich and William Bast (2005).
* James Dean – Outside the Lines (2002), episode of Biography, US television documentary includes interviews with Rod Steiger, William Bast, and Martin Landau (2002).

1942 – Isaac Hayes is born in Covington, Texas.

Isaac Lee Hayes, Jr. (August 20, 1942 – August 10, 2008[1]) was an American soul and funk singer-songwriter, musician, record producer, arranger, composer, and actor. Hayes was one of the main creative forces behind southern soul music label Stax Records, where he served as both an in-house songwriter and producer with partner David Porter during the mid-1960s. In the late 1960s, Hayes became a recording artist, and recorded successful soul albums such as Hot Buttered Soul (1969) and Black Moses (1971) as the Stax label’s premier artist.

Alongside his work in popular music, Hayes was a film score composer for motion pictures. His best known work, for the 1971 blaxploitation film Shaft, earned Hayes an Academy Award for Best Original Song (the first Academy Award received by an African-American in a non-acting category) and two Grammy Awards. He received a third Grammy for the album Black Moses.

In 1992, in recognition of his humanitarian work, he was crowned an honorary king of Ghana’s Ada district. Hayes also acted in motion pictures and television; from 1997 to 2006, he provided the voice for the character “Chef” on the Comedy Central animated TV series South Park.

Biography

Early years

Hayes was born in Covington, Tennessee, the second-born child of Isaac Sr. and Eula Hayes, but after their deaths was raised by his grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Willie Wade, Sr. The child of a poor family, he grew up picking cotton in Covington. He dropped out of high school, only to be encouraged later by his former high school teachers at Manassas High to get his diploma, which he earned at the age of 21. He began singing at the age of five at his local church, and, soon after, he taught himself to play the piano, electronic organ, flute and saxophone.

Stax Records and Shaft
Isaac Hayes’ 1969 album Hot Buttered Soul was both a commercial success and a milestone in the development of soul music.
Isaac Hayes’ 1969 album Hot Buttered Soul was both a commercial success and a milestone in the development of soul music.

Hayes began his recording career in the early 1960s, as a session player for various acts of the Memphis-based Stax Records. He later wrote a string of hit songs with songwriting partner David Porter, including “You Don’t Know Like I Know”, “Soul Man”, “When Something Is Wrong with My Baby”, and “Hold On I’m Comin” for Sam and Dave. Hayes, Porter and Stax studio band Booker T. & the MGs served as the main production team for much of the label’s output during the early and mid-1960s. In 1968, Hayes released his debut album, Presenting Isaac Hayes, a jazzy, largely improvised effort that was commercially unsuccessful.

His next album was Hot Buttered Soul, which was released in 1969 after Stax had gone through a major upheaval. The label had lost its largest star, Otis Redding, in a plane crash in December of 1967. Stax lost all of its back catalog to Atlantic Records in May of 1968. As a result, Stax executive vice president Al Bell called for 27 new albums to be completed in mid-1969; Hot Buttered Soul, was the most successful of these releases. This album is noted for Hayes’ image (shaved head, gold jewelry, sun glasses, etc) and his distinct sound (extended orchestral songs, heavy on organs, horns, and guitars, deep bass vocals, etc). Also on the album, Hayes re-interprets “Walk On By” (which had been made famous by Dionne Warwick) into a twelve-minute exploration. “By the Time I Get to Phoenix” starts with an eight-minute long monologue before breaking into song, and the lone original number, the funky “Hyperbolicsyllabicsesquedalymistic” runs nearly ten minutes, a significant break from the standard three minute soul/pop songs.

“Walk On By” would be the first of many times Hayes would take a Burt Bacharach standard, generally made famous as three minute pop songs by Dionne Warwick or Dusty Springfield, and transform it into an soulful, lengthy and almost gospel number.

In 1970, Hayes released two albums, The Isaac Hayes Movement and To Be Continued. The former stuck to the four song template of his previous album. Jerry Butler’s “I Stand Accused” begins with a trademark spoken word monologue, and Bacharach’s “I Just Don’t Know What to Do with Myself” is re-worked. The latter spawned the classic, “The Look Of Love,” another Bacharach song transformed into an eleven-minute epic of lush orchestral rhythm (mid-way it breaks into a rhythm guitar jam for a couple of minutes before suddenly resuming the slow love song). An edited three-minute version was issued as a single. The album also featured the instrumental “Ike’s Mood,” which segued into his own version of “You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling.” Hayes released a Christmas single, “The Mistletoe and Me” (with “Winter Snow” as a B-side).
The soundtrack for the 1971 blaxploitation film Shaft remains Hayes’ best-known work.
The soundtrack for the 1971 blaxploitation film Shaft remains Hayes’ best-known work.

In early 1971, Hayes composed music for the soundtrack of the blaxploitation film Shaft. (in the movie, he also appeared in a cameo role as the bartender of No Name Bar). The title theme, with its wah-wah guitar and multi-layered symphonic arrangement, would become a worldwide hit single, and spent two weeks at number one in the Billboard Hot 100 in November. The remainder of the album was mostly instrumentals covering big beat jazz, bluesy funk, and hard Stax-styled soul. The other two vocal songs, the social commentary “Soulville” and the nineteen-minute jam “Do Your Thing,” would be edited down to hit singles. Hayes won an Academy Award for Best Original Song for the “Theme from Shaft,” and was nominated for Best Original Dramatic Score for the film’s score.

Later in the year, Hayes released a double album, Black Moses, that expanded on his earlier sounds and featured The Jackson 5′s song “Never Can Say Goodbye”. Another single, “I Can’t Help It”, was not featured on the album.

In 1972, Hayes would record the theme tune for the TV series The Men and enjoy a hit single (with “Type Thang” as a B-side).

Hayes was back in 1973 with an acclaimed live double album, Live At Sahara Tahoe, and followed it up with the album Joy, with eerie beat of the fifteen-minute title track. He moved away from cover songs in this album. An edited “Joy” would be a hit single.

In 1974, Hayes was featured in the blaxploitation films Three Tough Guys and Truck Turner, and he recorded soundtracks for both. Tough Guys was being almost devoid of vocals and Truck Turner yielded a single with the title theme. The soundtrack score was eventually used by filmmaker Quentin Tarantino in the Kill Bill film series and has been used for over 30 years as the opening score of Brazilian radio show Jornal de Esportes at Jovem Pan station.

HBS (Hot Buttered Soul Records) and bankruptcy
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By 1974, Stax Records was having serious financial problems, stemming from problems with overextension and limited record sales and distribution. Hayes himself was deep in debt to Union Planters Bank, which administered loans for the Stax label and many of its other key employees. In September of that year, Hayes sued Stax for $5.3 million. As Stax was in deep debt and could not pay, the label made an arrangement with Hayes and Union Planters: Stax released Hayes from his recording and production contracts, and Union Planters would collect all of Hayes’ income and apply it towards his debts. Hayes formed his own label, Hot Buttered Soul, which released its product through ABC Records. His new album, 1975′s Chocolate Chip saw Hayes embrace the disco sound with the title track and lead single. “I Can’t Turn Around” would prove a popular song as time went on. This would be Hayes’ last album to chart top 40 for many years. Later in the year, the all instrumental Disco Connection album fully embraced disco.

In 1976, the album cover of Juicy Fruit featured Hayes in a pool with naked women, and spawned the title track single and the classic “Storm Is Over”. Later the same year the Groove-A-Thon album featured the singles “Rock Me Easy Baby” and the title track. However, while all these albums were regarded as solid efforts, Hayes was no longer selling large numbers. He and his wife were forced into bankruptcy in 1976, as they owed over $6 million. By the end of the bankruptcy proceedings in 1977, Hayes had lost his home, much of his personal property, and the rights to all future royalties earned from the music he’d written, performed, and produced.

Polydor and hiatus, film work, and the Duke of New York

In 1977, Hayes was back with a new deal with Polydor Records, a live album of duets with Dionne Warwick did moderately well, and his comeback studio album New Horizon sold better and enjoyed a hit single “Out The Ghetto”, and also featured the popular “It’s Heaven To Me”.

1978′s For The Sake Of Love saw Hayes record a sequel to “Theme from Shaft” (“Shaft II”), but was most famous for the single “Zeke The Freak”, a song that would have a shelf life of decades and be a major part of the House movement in the UK. The same year, Fantasy Records, which had bought out Stax Records, released an album of Hayes’ non-album singles and archived recordings as a “new” album, Hotbed, in 1978.

In 1979, Hayes returned to the Top 40 with Don’t Let Go and its disco-styled title track that became a hit single (U.S. #18), and also featured the classic “A Few More Kisses To Go”. Later in the year he added vocals and worked on Millie Jackson’s album Royal Rappin’s.

Neither 1980s And Once Again or 1981′s Lifetime Thing produced notable songs or big sales, and Hayes chose to take a break from music to pursue acting.

In the 1970s, Hayes featured in the films Shaft (1971) and Truck Turner (1974); he also had a recurring role in the TV series The Rockford Files as ex-con strongman Gandolph Fitch, including one episode alongside duet-partner Dionne Warwick. In the 1980s and 90s, he appeared in numerous films, notably Escape from New York (1981), I’m Gonna Git You Sucka (1988), Prime Target (1991), Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993), and Johnny Mnemonic (1995), as well as in episodes of The A-Team and Miami Vice. He also attempted a musical comeback, embracing the style of drum machines and synth for 1986s U-Turn and 1988s Love Attack, though neither proved successful.

Return to form

Hayes launched a high-selling and successful comeback on the Virgin label in 1995. Branded was considered a return to form, and received positive reviews throughout the music press. A companion album Raw and Refined was released around the same time and featured a collection of previously unheard instrumentals, both old and new.

Hayes would become even more in the public consciousness with his long-running role as overweight loverman “Chef” in the controversial hit TV series South Park and in the feature length film South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut. (See below)

Hayes was inducted into the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame in 2002. The same year, a documentary highlighting Isaac’s career and his impact on many of the Memphis artists in the 1960s onwards was produced, “Only The Strong Survive”.

In 2004, Hayes appeared in a recurring minor role as the Jaffa Tolok on the television series Stargate SG-1. The following year, he appeared in the critically acclaimed independent film Hustle & Flow.

Basketball team ownership

On July 17, 1974, Hayes, along with Mike Storen, Avron Fogelman and Kemmons Wilson took over ownership of the American Basketball Association team the Memphis Tams.

Scientology activism

Hayes joined Scientology around 1995. He contributed endorsement blurbs for many Scientology books. The frontispiece page for Scientology: The Fundamentals of Thought (1997 paperback edition) quotes Hayes as saying “If you really want to know about the mind, the spirit and life itself, read Scientology: The Fundamentals of Thought. It will put you on the right path!”

Hayes also appears in the Scientology film Orientation.

In 1998 Hayes and fellow Scientologist entertainers Anne Archer, Chick Corea and Haywood Nelson attended the 30th anniversary of Freedom Magazine, the Church of Scientology’s investigative news journal, at the National Press Club in Washington DC, to honor eleven human rights activists.

Hayes and Doug E. Fresh, another Scientologist musician, recorded an album in 2001 called The Joy Of Creating – The Golden Era Musicians And Friends Play L. Ron Hubbard. The album incorporates Scientology themes in the lyrics, such as “Let me tell you something. Wax enthusiastic and you’ll feel so. A being causes his own feelings. It’s the Joy Of Creating. Uh!”.

Stroke and death
Wikinews has related news:
Soul singer Isaac Hayes dies at age 65

On March 20, 2006, Roger Friedman of Fox News reported that Hayes had suffered a stroke in January.

Hayes was found unconscious in his home located just east of Memphis, Tennessee on August 10, 2008 as reported by the Shelby County Sheriff’s Department. A Shelby County Sheriff’s deputy responded to Hayes’s home after his wife found him on the floor near a still-running treadmill. Hayes was taken to Baptist Memorial Hospital in Memphis, where he was pronounced dead at 2:08pm

South Park’s “Chef”
Isaac Hayes’ character Chef from South Park.
Isaac Hayes’ character Chef from South Park.

During the late-1990s, Hayes became popular as the voice of Chef on the Comedy Central series South Park. Chef was a soul-singing cafeteria worker at the South Park kids’ school. A song from the series performed by Chef, “Chocolate Salty Balls (P.S. I Love You)”, received some international radio airplay in 1999. It reached number-one on the UK singles chart and also on the Irish singles chart. The track also appeared on the album Chef Aid: The South Park Album in 1998.

Scientology episode

In the South Park episode “Trapped in the Closet”, a satire and exposé of Scientology which aired on November 16, 2005, Hayes did not appear in his role as Chef. While appearing on the Opie and Anthony radio show about a month after the episode aired, Hayes was asked, “What did you think about when Matt and Trey did that episode on Scientology?” He replied (in a noticeably calm, casual manner), “One thing about Matt and Trey, they lampoon everybody, and if you take that serious, I’ll sell you the Brooklyn bridge for two dollars. That’s what they do.”

In an interview for The A.V. Club on January 4, 2006, Hayes was again asked about the episode. Hayes said that he told the creators, Matt Stone and Trey Parker, “Guys, you have it all wrong. We’re not like that. I know that’s your thing, but get your information correct, because somebody might believe that shit, you know?” He then told them to take a couple of Scientology courses to understand what they do. In the interview, Hayes defended South Park’s style of controversial humor, noting that he was not pleased with the show’s treatment of Scientology, but conceding that he “understands what Matt and Trey are doing.”

Departure from South Park
Wikinews has related news:
Isaac Hayes quits South Park over Scientology episode

On March 13, 2006, a statement was issued in Hayes’ name, indicating that he was asking to be released from his contract with Comedy Central, citing recent episodes which satirized religious beliefs as being intolerant. “There is a place in this world for satire, but there is a time when satire ends and intolerance and bigotry towards religious beliefs of others begins,” he was quoted in a press statement. The statement, however, did not directly mention Scientology. A response from Stone said that Hayes’ complaints stemmed from the show’s criticism of Scientology and that he “has no problem – and he’s cashed plenty of checks – with our show making fun of Christians, Muslims, Mormons or Jews.” never heard a peep out of Isaac in any way until we did Scientology. He wants a different standard for religions other than his own, and to me, that is where intolerance and bigotry begin.” Stone and Parker agreed to release Hayes from his contract per his request.

On March 20, 2006, Roger Friedman of Fox News reported having been told that the March 13th statement was made in Hayes’ name, but not by Hayes himself. He wrote: “Isaac Hayes did not quit South Park. My sources say that someone quit it for him. … Friends in Memphis tell me that Hayes did not issue any statements on his own about South Park. They are mystified.”

The South Park season 10 premiere (aired March 22, 2006) featured “The Return of Chef,” a thinly veiled telling of the affair from Parker and Stone’s point of view. Using sound clips from past episodes, it depicts Chef as having been brainwashed and urges viewers (via Kyle talking to the town) to “remember Chef as the jolly old guy who always broke into song” and not to blame Chef for his defection, but rather, as Kyle stated, “be mad at that fruity little club for scrambling his brains.”

After South Park

Hayes’ income was sharply reduced as a result of leaving South Park.

In April 2008, while a guest on The Adam Carolla Show, Hayes stumbled in his responses to questions – possibly as a result of health or related issues. A caller questioned whether Hayes was under the influence of a substance, and Carolla and co-host Teresa Strasser asked Hayes if he had ever used marijuana. After some confusion on what was being asked, Hayes replied that he had only ever tried it once. During the interview the radio hosts made light of Hayes’ awkward answers, and replayed Hayes comments as sound drops – often simulating conversation with his co-hosts. Hayes stated during this interview that he was no longer on good terms with Trey Parker and Matt Stone.

During the spring of 2008, Hayes shot scenes for a comedy about soul musicians inspired by the history of Stax Records entitled Soul Men, in which he will appear as himself in a supporting role. Soul Men also stars Bernie Mac, who coincidentally would die the day before Hayes in August 2008.  The film is scheduled for release in November 2008.

Charitable work

The Isaac Hayes Foundation was founded in 1999 by Isaac Hayes.

In February 2006, Hayes appeared in a Youth for Human Rights International music video called “United”. YHRI is a human rights group founded by a Scientologist.

Hayes was also involved in other human rights related groups such as the One Campaign.

Family

Hayes fathered 12 children, and has 14 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. One son is his namesake, Isaac Hayes III.

1923 – Sam Phillips, the producer who discovered Elvis, is born in Florence, Ala. With his Sun Records label, he also brought to the world’s attention the talents of Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, B.B. King, and Howlin’ Wolf.

Samuel Cornelius Phillips (January 5, 1923 – July 30, 2003), better known as Sam Phillips, was an American record producer who played an important role in the emergence of rock and roll as the major form of popular music in the 1950s. He is most notably attributed with the discovery of Elvis Presley, and is associated with several other noteworthy rhythm and blues and rock and roll stars of the period.

Phillips was a native of Florence, Alabama and a graduate of Coffee High School.

The “Memphis Recording Service” and Sun Records

In the 1940s, Phillips worked as a DJ for Muscle Shoals, Alabama radio station WLAY (AM). According to Phillips, this radio station’s “open format” (of broadcasting music from both white and black musicians) would later inspire his work in Memphis.
Sam Phillips with recording equipment as shown on a display wall inside Sun Studio

On January 3, 1950, Phillips opened the “Memphis Recording Service” at 706 Union Avenue in Memphis, Tennessee, which also served as the studios for Phillips’ own label, Sun Records, through the 1950s. In addition to musical performances, he recorded events such as weddings and funerals, selling the recordings.

Phillips recorded what some—notably music historian Peter Guralnick—consider the first rock and roll record: “Rocket 88″ by Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats, a band led by 19-year-old Ike Turner, who also wrote the song. The recording was released on the Chess/Checker record label in Chicago, in 1951. From 1950 to 1954 Phillips recorded the music of black rhythm and blues artists such as James Cotton, Rufus Thomas, Rosco Gordon, Little Milton, Bobby Blue Bland, and others. Blues legends such as B.B. King and Howlin’ Wolf made their first recordings at his studio. In fact, Phillips deemed Howlin’ Wolf his greatest discovery and he deemed Elvis Presley his second greatest discovery.

Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison

Although much has been written about Phillips’ goals, he can be seen stating the following: “Everyone knew that I was just a struggling cat down here trying to develop new and different artists, and get some freedom in music, and tap some resources and people that weren’t being tapped.”

Elvis Presley, who recorded his version of Arthur “Big Boy” Cruddup’s “That’s All Right (Mama)” at Phillips’ studio, met that goal, and became highly successful, first in Memphis, then throughout the southern United States. For the first six months, the flip side, “Blue Moon of Kentucky”, his upbeat version of a Bill Monroe bluegrass song, was slightly more popular than “That’s All Right (Mama).” While still not known outside the South, Presley’s singles and regional success became a drawing card for Sun Records, as singing hopefuls soon arrived from all over the region. Singers such as Sonny Burgess (“My Bucket’s Got A Hole In It”), Charlie Rich, Junior Parker, and Billy Lee Riley recorded for Sun with some success, while others such as Jerry Lee Lewis, BB King, Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison, and Carl Perkins would become superstars.

Despite this popular regional acclaim, by mid 1955 Sam Phillips’ studio experienced financial difficulties, and he sold Presley’s contract in November of that year; RCA Records’ offer of $35,000 beat out Atlantic Records’ offer of $25,000. Through the sale of Presley’s contract, he was able to boost the distribution of Perkins’ song “Blue Suede Shoes”, and it became Sun Records’ first national hit.

Phillips is credited with teaching production to Presley who used this knowledge into his career with RCA Victor. Although Steve Sholes was credited as the official producer of Elvis after his move to RCA, it was Elvis who in reality, produced most of the music, using what he had learned from Sam Phillips.

Phillips had an open style and insightful guidance that seemed to allow musicians, especially Presley, to search and feel their way to a point to where they would perform beyond Phillips’ and their own expectations. He also seemed to have a sense for when the artist was about to reach the point of their best performance. Phillips recorded looking for a feel, not technical perfection. Phillips told Elvis that the worst thing he could go for was perfection. Phillips was always seeking what he called the perfect/imperfect cut. This meant that it was not technically perfect, but perfectly conveyed the feeling and emotion of the song to the listener and gave the song a living personality, partially due to it being technically imperfect.

Phillips innovated while recording Elvis. Most recordings at the time gave substantially more volume to the vocals. Phillips pulled back the Elvis vocals, blending it more with the instrumental performances. Phillips also used tape delay to get an echo into the Elvis recordings by running the tape through a second recorder head. RCA, not knowing the method that Phillips had used, was unable to recreate the Elvis echo when recording “Heartbreak Hotel”. In an attempt to duplicate the Sun Records sound, RCA used a large empty hallway at the studio to create an echo, but it sounded nothing like the echo that Phillips had created at Sun Records.

Elvis did not have a band when he arrived at Sun Records. It was Sam Phillips who decided that little was needed to augment Elvis’ vocals and rhythm guitar. Phillips chose two musicians, lead guitarist Scotty Moore and bassist Bill Black to perform with Elvis. This choice of musicians proved to be inspired as this group along with drummer D.J. Fontana produced some of the biggest hits in rock ‘n’ roll history, even after Phillips had sold the Presley contract to RCA Victor. These included “Heartbreak Hotel”, “Hound Dog”, and “Don’t Be Cruel”.

Phillips’ pivotal role in the early days of rock and roll was exemplified by a celebrated jam session on December 4, 1956 which came to be known as the Million Dollar Quartet. Jerry Lee Lewis was playing piano for a Carl Perkins recording session at Phillips’ studio. When Elvis Presley walked in unexpectedly, Johnny Cash was called into the studio by Phillips, leading to an impromptu session featuring the four musicians.

Phillips challenged the four to achieve gold record sales, offering a free Cadillac to the first. The contest is commemorated in a song by the “Drive-by Truckers”.

Station WHER

Phillips launched radio station WHER on October 29, 1955. Each of the young women who auditioned for the station assumed there would only be one female announcer position like other stations at that time. Only a few days before the first broadcast did they learn of the “All Girl Radio” format. Almost every position at the station was held by a woman.

Other business interests

Through savvy investments, Phillips soon amassed a fortune. He was one of the first investors in Holiday Inn, a new motel chain that was about to go national; he became involved with the chain shortly after selling the rights to Elvis Presley to RCA for $35,000 which he multiplied many times over the years with Holiday Inn. He would also create two different subsidiary recording labels–Phillips International and Holiday Inn Records. Neither would match the success or influence of Sun, which Phillips ultimately sold to Shelby Singleton in the 1960s.

He also owned the Sun Studio Café in Memphis. One location was in the Mall of Memphis.

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

In 1986 Sam Phillips was part of the first group inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and his pioneering contribution to the genre has been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. In 1987, he was inducted into the Alabama Music Hall of Fame. He received a Grammy Trustees Award for his lifetime achievements in 1991. In 1998, he was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame, and in October 2001 he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.

Phillips died of respiratory failure at St. Francis Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee on July 30, 2003, only one day before the original Sun Studio was designated a National Historic Landmark. He is interred in the Memorial Park Cemetery, Memphis.

He is portrayed by Charles Cyphers in the 1979 film Elvis, Trey Wilson in the 1989 film Great Balls of Fire! and by Dallas Roberts in the 2005 film Walk the Line. He was portrayed by Gregory Itzin in a 1993 episode of Quantum Leap entitled “Memphis Melody.”

He was also portrayed in the 1981 movie This Is Elvis by son Knox Phillips.